How to Cook Pasta in the Instant Pot / Electric Pressure Cooker
Learn how to cook pasta in your Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or other brand of electric pressure cooker. Walk away from the stove and tend to other things while your pasta cooks itself in the pressure cooker—no boiling over, no stirring!
Hi everyone, Jennifer here! I’m looking forward to posting my family’s favorite recipes for you. First up, a basic recipe/tutorial.
Pasta is one of my favorite meatless meals, plus it’s something that I always have on-hand. I know it’s not hard to cook pasta on the stovetop, but when things are busy, it’s SO nice to just throw ingredients in the pressure cooker and walk away from the kitchen. I don’t have to worry about the noodles boiling over or tomato sauce splattering all over the stove.
This makes it easier to get dinner on the table while taking care of my kids or when I need to answer the door or an email.
To make this quick pasta into a full a meal, I like to serve it with a fresh tossed salad and garlic bread. However, I often just serve it with whatever we have on hand—fresh fruit and frozen veggies. Either way, it’s a quick meal the whole family enjoys.
Tuscan Garlic Chicken Fettuccine (The Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook, page 198)
How to Cook Pasta in Your Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot
Calculating Your Cook Time
For perfect pasta from your pressure cooker, there’s a pretty simple formula: take the time listed on the box, cut it in half, then subtract an additional minute.
For example, if I were making a bowtie pasta and the package said to cook for 12 minutes, I’d set the cook time in the pressure cooker on high pressure for 5 minutes. (12 minutes divided by 2, then subtract 1 additional minute).
This formula works as a good starting point whether you’re using regular pasta, whole wheat pasta, gluten-free pasta, rice-based pasta, or pretty much any other type of pasta.
Also, if the cook time is an odd number, I generally round down. If you like your pasta with a bit more bite, next time you cook it, subtract an additional minute from the cook time. If you want it softer, add a minute until you get it just the way you like it. After a few times making pasta, you’ll know the perfect timing to cook your preferred brand of pasta to your preferred taste.
Anytime Spaghetti and Meatballs (The Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook, page 126)
Use an Intermittent Release
High-starch foods (like potatoes and pastas) frequently foam while cooking and generally benefit from a longer natural release to allow the foam to subside. However, pastas are a quick-cooking food and you need a quick pressure release to stop the cooking.
Get the best of both worlds by using an intermittent release. Once the cook time ends and the timer sounds, flip the pressure cooking switch from the Sealed to Venting position. Allow the pressure to release until you see foam or large water droplets coming from the valve. As soon as this happens, flip the switch back to the Sealed position and wait for 20 to 30 seconds. Flip back to the Venting position and repeat as necessary until all the pressure is released.
With most pastas, I only need to repeat this process a time or two; however, in some cases you may need to switch back to Sealed more often.
If you’re worried about the foaming, add a fat to your pasta in the form of oil or butter. Or, if you prefer a meat sauce, saute the ground beef or chicken in the bottom of a pressure cooking pot, then transfer to a paper towel–lined plate and set aside. Don’t bother wiping out the pan, just add the pasta and water and cook as directed. The fat from the meat will help reduce foaming.
Grown Up Mac and Cheese (The Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook, page 268)
Know Your Noodles
Some types of pastas work better in the pressure cooker than others. Generally, unless I’m following a specific recipe that calls for pasta, I prefer to use shorter noodles like rotini, penne, farfalle (bowtie), or shells. I’ve found that longer pastas, including spaghetti, linguine, and angel hair, can sometimes clump together in the pressure cooker. I don’t have that problem with shorter noodles.
If you want to cook spaghetti, break the noodles in half and add a tablespoon or two of butter or vegetable oil to the pressure cooking pot. This will help minimize clumping. Once you’ve released the pressure, give the noodles in the pot a gentle stir. If necessary, use a fork to separate the individual noodles.
Also, be aware that some brands of pastas foam more than others. If you’re having trouble with foaming, consider switching brands and see if that makes a difference.
Brand also makes a difference for specialty noodles like gluten-free or whole wheat pastas. I’ve had great luck with Barilla pastas, which is also my friend Jane‘s favorite brand for gluten-free pastas. (Not sponsored, this is just my favorite!)
Adding the Ingredients
Whether you’re cooking a single serving or a whole box, you’ll need to use enough liquid to just barely cover the pasta. (Of course, be sure to follow your pressure cooker’s minimum liquid requirements.) After cooking, drain your pasta through a colander or use a ladle to spoon off the extra liquid.
Generally, unless I’m following a specific recipe, I prefer to cook the pasta in water and then cook the sauce pot-in-pot above the pasta. However, many people like cooking their pasta in a sauce. If you do this, it is SO IMPORTANT to make sure you’ve added enough liquid to the pot. Many jarred sauces have thickeners added, which can create a film on the bottom of the cooking pot that will change how your pasta cooks and may lead to a Burn error.
If you’re cooking the pasta in a sauce and the sauce seems thin, you can turn off your pressure cooker. The pasta will continue to absorb liquid as it cools. If the sauce has far too much liquid, you can turn on the Saute feature and simmer the pasta until thickened.
Do you like to cook pasta in the pressure cooker? Do you have a favorite recipe you’d like to have made into a pressure cooker recipe? Let me know in the comments!
Pressure Cooker Penne and Quick Marinara Sauce
Cook your pasta and homemade meatless marinara sauce at the same time in the same pot—all done in 3 minutes at High Pressure.
Ingredients
- 4 cups water, plus more as needed
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
- 1 (16 ounces) package penne pasta
- 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes in puree
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil OR 1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Freshly grated Parmesan, Romano, or mozzarella cheese, for serving
Instructions
- In the pressure cooking pot, stir together water, vegetable oil, 1 teaspoons salt, and pasta. Make sure the water just covers the pasta in the pot.
- Place a rack in the pressure cooker above the penne.
- For the marinara sauce, in a 7-inch round cake pan, stir together the tomatoes, garlic powder, basil, red pepper flakes, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Use a sling to carefully lower the pan onto the rack. Lock the lid in place. Select High Pressure and 3 minutes cook time.
- When the cook time ends, turn off the pressure cooker. Use a quick pressure release. If larger water drops or foam start to emerge from the steam release valve, return the switch to the Sealed position and wait for 30 seconds or a minute, then release the pressure again. Repeat this process, as needed, until no foam comes from the steam release valve and all the pressure is released.
- When the valve drops, carefully remove the lid. Remove the marinara sauce and rack from the cooking pot. If you prefer your pasta more tender, select Saute and simmer until it reaches your desired tenderness. Use a ladle or strainer to remove excess water from the pasta.
- Stir in the marinara. Taste and adjust the seasoning if desired.
- Serve topped with cheese.
Notes
The penne I used for this recipe was a 16 ounce package of Barilla penne with a 9 minute cook time. (Not whole wheat penne.) If your pasta has a different cook time listed on the box, you'll need to convert the time cooked at pressure accordingly.
**if you prefer a meat sauce, saute ground beef or chicken in the pressure cooking pot for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel–lined plate and set aside. Add to the cake pan with the crushed tomatoes and proceed with the recipe as directed.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 475Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 7mgSodium: 883mgCarbohydrates: 7gFiber: 5gSugar: 7gProtein: 16g
Nutrition information is calculated by Nutritionix and may not always be accurate.
More pressure cooker / Instant Pot pasta recipes:
- Pepperoni Pizza Pasta
- Chicken Bacon Penne Pasta
- Chicken Enchilada Pasta
- Bow Tie Pasta
- American Goulash
- All our Pressure Cooker Pasta Recipes
Instant Pot / pressure cooker pasta recipes in The Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook:
- Baked Cheese Ravioli (page 124)
- Spaghetti with Ragu (page 125)
- Anytime Spaghetti and Meatballs (page 126)
- Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta (page 165)
- Linguine and Clam Sauce (page 181)
- Bow Tie Pasta with Sausage (page 182)
- Monterey Chicken Pasta (page 183)
- Pasta Primavera (page 184)
- Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo (page 195)
- Spicy Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti (page 197)
- Tuscan Garlic Chicken Fettuccine (page 198)
- Grown-Up Mac and Cheese (page 268)
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This totally screwed up my dinner, ninja foodi covered the noodles, went one minute under half, and noodles weren’t done. That’s not the part that ruined my dinner, I timed my stir fry cook perfectly and now the meat of over cooked from sitting in the pot with the lid on while re cooking noodles…
Hi Tor – sorry you had trouble with the timing of your dinner. It can be difficult to judge how much time pasta will take to cook in the pressure cooker since time to pressure and time to release the pressure varies as well as the brand and type of pasta you are using. I’m sure with more practice you’ll be better at timing your meals.
How can you not say whether to set for high or low pressure? How can anyone not say that?
The recipe for a full pasta/sauce dish says “high pressure”, but the entire rambling plain-pasta section fails to do so. There is the time formula; there is the intermittent repeated quick release; there is nothing – nothing – about high or low pressure in the manual setting. I even did a find-text search for every instance of the word “pressure”, and it was not there.The IP Duo has a choice of “Manual” settings for “High” and “Low” pressure within the “Manual” setting. I usually ignore writers who fail to tell readers what pressure to set, but this started out looking so good. It was a first impression that failed to deliver.
Hi VeeJay – very few things cook on Low pressure, so high pressure can be assumed unless you’re specifically told to cook at low pressure. The sample recipe on the post does specify high pressure. I’ve added high pressure to the explanation as well.
Could I use a metal bowl in place of the cake pan?
Hi Sabrina – yes, a metal bowl will work if you don’t have the right size cake pan.
dang, i always transfer my bags of pasta to nicer plastic containers in my pantry as soon as i get home from the grocery, i have no idea what is the recommended cook time for rotinis.
Hi Roxanne – American Beauty rotini has a cook time of 8 minutes on the stove, so in the pressure cooker you would use a 3 minute cook time.
So the pasta doesn’t get drained? How does it not come out starchy?
That’s right the pasta does not get drained. The sauce may be a little bit starchy, but not noticeably so and if you prefer, you can cook the sauce on top of the pasta pot in pot and use more water and drain it.
Appreciate the tips on intermittent release and cooking plain pasta. Thank you.
Any chance of getting the info put into a printable pdf? I have most of the recipes (in Barbara’s book!), but would love to have the general info at my fingertips for when making &/or converting other non-ip/pc recipes.
My menfolk love a ready made mac sauce. If i’m using this with macaroni pasta, would i add a cup of water too do you think to cook the pasta in?
Thanks
Hi Viv – what type of ready-made mac sauce are you using? Generally, you always want to add enough water just to cover the pasta.
My 3 teens love a pasta dish from a local restaurant called MEXICAN MAC described as using “cavatappi pasta smothered in our creamy béchamel sauce & sharp cheddar cheese with chorizo sausage, onions, green peppers, tomatoes & pepperjack cheese—slightly spicy“. The recipe I use at home, which seems to be an okay substitute, minus the meat and veggies, is from Taste of Home.com (https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/mexican-macaroni-and-cheese/). Can you convert to an IP recipe? Making the cheese sauce is time consuming and it doesn’t seem to come out quite right in my hands. Thanks!
Hi Erma – you could spice up my mac and cheese recipe https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/macaroni-and-cheese-in-the-pressure-cooker-and-a-giveaway/ Add the chili powder and paprika instead of the dry mustard and cayenne pepper. Then stir in the jalapenos after the cheese is melted. The pasta will continue to absorb the sauce while it’s baking in the oven, or you could even use a CrispLid to melt the cheese right in the pot. https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/mealthy-crisplid-air-fryer-lid-for-electric-pressure-cooker/
Can you cook pasta, pasta source and chicken breast all at the same time
Hi Chris – yes, you can. You just have to dice the chicken so it has the same cook time as the pasta. Here’s two recipes with chicken, sauce and pasta https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/pressure-cooker-chicken-bacon-penne-pasta/ https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/chicken-enchilada-pasta/ These two you could sub chicken https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/pressure-cooker-bow-tie-pasta/ https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/pressure-cooker-pepperoni-pizza-pasta/
what if I dont have a cake pan, may I cook it all together?
Hi Gissy – if you want to cook it all together, I recommend this recipe https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/pressure-cooker-bow-tie-pasta/
ugh seems complicted
Not complicated – just a few things to be aware of.
I was skeptical about trying pasta in my IP until my favorite “meals for two” blogger put up a recipe for Instant Pot Spaghetti with ground beef, etc., all done in the IP.
I’m a believer now and thank you for these great tips.
Sounds like a great recipe. I like the idea of cooking the pasta separate from the sauce and I plan to try it soon. I was wondering how I would add some sliced mushrooms or green beans to this recipe. I am pretty much a newbie and I’m using the 3 qt. IP. I can’t wait to try this recipe. You explained everything so clearly. Will be hard to mess up. Thanks.
Hi Phyllis – If you’d like to add mushrooms to the sauce, I would saute them before adding the pasta and water to the pressure cooking pot, or add canned mushrooms without sauteing. Typically green beans are served along side pasta, so I’d probably cook them separately.
Thanks for this great information on Pasta. Also I have your cookbook “The Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook” and love it!.
That’s great – thanks Beverly!
Hi! I’m new to the pressure cooker game and was having a hard time finding how long to cook pasta. Thank you for having a clear answer- it worked perfect!
We’re so glad we could help! Have fun using your new pressure cooker!
Jennifer-I had to pop back in and tell you I finally got around to trying this recipe tonight for dinner…it was a hectic day and I wanted something easy that went together fast. This fit the bill-and boy oh boy is it DELICIOUS! Even Mr. “Where’s the meat?” loved it-he said that several times while we were eating. He couldn’t believe it only took 4 minutes to cook both the pasta and the sauce. Thank you SO much for giving me this simple go-to dinner idea that is on the table in a flash. I’ll be making this again and again.
Carol, this made my night! I’m so glad this was a hit!!
I’m curious if anyone has done gluten-free pastas? Since the base is ‘rice’ and not flour, I’m thinking you cannot cook this in the IP? When cooking on the stove, the water is very milky from the rice. Thank you.
My sister in law eats gluten free, so when she comes to our house for dinner, we’ve used the Barilla gluten free pasta pictured in this post. https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/how-to-cook-pasta-in-the-instant-pot/
We cooked it in a 6 quart Instant Pot and needed to use an intermittent pressure release (opening and closing the valve), but it worked great for us! Let us know if you try it!
Thanks so much for your very informative article. I’m not great at cooking and would like to get better. I received an instant pot for Christmas and want to learn to use it. My question is when you say put a rack in the pot what would that look like? I have a little rack that you put in the bottom of the pot that came with my duo plus ip, so i’m not sure that’s what you would mean for this recipe. Can you send a link of what the rack would look like. I hope this doesn’t sound strange. Very much a newbie at cooking.
Hi Rebekah! I’m so glad you asked! There are two sizes of racks/trivets—the short kind that comes with the Instant Pot and a little taller one that’s really useful for cooking over taller items pot-in-pot. For cooking the pasta sauce over the pasta, I prefer the taller one. I know some people balance the one that comes with the instant pot on the noodles, but I’m always worried it’d spill. The one I use and recommend is #14 on the accessories list here: https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/electric-pressure-cooker-instant-pot-gift-guide/#accessories
Five star ALL THE WAY, THANK YOu!!
This is such a great source for pasta lovers. SOO good.
This formula for cooking pasta worked perfectly! I’ve jotted it down and will use it often! Thanks, Jennifer 🙂
The perfect instructions for pasta. I always got a burn notice on my IP before this.
Thanks Ava – glad it was helpful!
This is awesome! Thanks for sharing!
These tips have helped us SO MUCH!
I didn’t know you could cook pasta in a pressure cooker!
Brilliant! Now I know what was causing my IP pasta issues. Thanks so much!!
Your Instant Pot recipes always cook perfectly. This pasta is no exception!
Hi Jennifer! I hope this isn’t a dumb question, but how much water do you use?
Hi Cindi! It’s a great question!!! The amount of water I use varies based on how much pasta I’m cooking. When I make a full 16 ounce box of pasta, I’ll generally use around 4 cups of water—sometimes I need a little more to cover the noodles, sometimes a little less. And you can go ahead and use a long spoon to push the noodles flat against the bottom of the pan so that they’re all covered and spread out evenly.
I hope this helps!
Thanks for all the guidance on IP cooking pasta. I’m wondering how those instructions would possibly change for fresh pasta.
In my experience, regular fresh pasta have a really quick cook time—like 2 or 3 minutes in boiling water—so I’d hesitate to cook fresh pasta in the pressure cooker. However, I’ve had great luck with refrigerated ravioli and other longer cooking fresh pastas. The brand of ravioli I use from the store has a 11 minute cook time, so I cook it for 5 minutes in my pressure cooker.
@Jennifer: Thanks so much for posting this informative, well-written, easy-to-follow article. I, like many, have been hesitant to prepare pasta in our IP due to warnings of “soggy” pasta. Your formula sounds easy and from what you’ve shared, a tried and true method. I look forward to viewing more of your posts.
Thanks so much! I hope your pasta turns out great!
There is a picture in you post of a dish with elbow macaroni, bacon and it looks like rosemary in a cream sauce. Can I get the recipe?
Love your recipes and instructions.
Thanks,
Hi Eileen – that’s a picture of the Grown-Up Mac and Cheese on page 268 of my cookbook https://amzn.to/2QZObfC It gets great reviews 🙂
Great article. Thank you for the info Barbara. I think I will be brave enough to try in my IP instead of the stove top now.
I really want to try this recipe. I have had my instant pot for over three years now but I have never cooked pasta in it because of the foaming. This looks like a good recipe for a newbie like me. What size is the can of crushed tomatoes? Thank you.
Oh, I hope you do give it a try! I use the bigger 28 ounce can of tomatoes with this recipe. However, if you just have a smaller size can on hand, you can still use that too, just half the seasonings. I’ll update the recipe. 🙂
Hi Jennifer-what a great post with lots of valuable-for-me information. I have only cooked pasta in the pressure cooker when the specific recipe calls for it. I guess I’m a creature of habit…being Italian, I get the big pot full of water and cook it on the stove. Time for me to think outside the box…the pasta box that is! Using the pressure cooker would definitely be easier and quicker…takes FOREVER for that doggone water to boil. I may just try your recipe above this week. It will be perfect for the upcoming busy week when I’ve been going nonstop trying to get holiday stuff done and want something easy and quick to serve.for dinner. What size can of tomatoes do you use?
Hi Carol, sorry to omit the size—I’ll update the recipe. It’s the bigger 28 ounce can of tomatoes that I use—I like to have lots of sauce and I’ll even freeze the extras for lunches if there is any. 🙂
We’ve been making this a lot this month as well—there’s just so much going on! I hope you enjoy it!